Whether you’re playing hockey for fun
or competitively, you’ll want to have the most ice-time you can get. For
some reason or another, your coach might not feel you deserve more
ice-time. Maybe he doesn’t trust you defensively or he doesn’t believe
in your offensive capabilities. It might even be a personality conflict
for that matter.
If you’re playing beer league with the
boys after work, this can still apply to you. If you’re up or down a
goal with a few minutes in the third and you’re not on the ice, there’s a
reason. Your buddies don’t believe that you’ll get the job done.
Here are the top 10 ways that you can get more ice-time.
10. Be Positive – There’s
nothing more motivating than hearing a guy who hasn’t played much all
game stand up on the bench and let his teammates know they made a good
play. A good coach will notice this. He knows that you haven’t played
much and that still you keep a positive attitude.
On the flip side, there’s nothing worse
than a player who complains and bitches about his ice-time and makes it
noticeable to the others. This is distracting for the others and
disrespectful towards the coach. You want the coach on your side, not
against you.
If you stay positive, the coach will reward you.
9. Play Your Game – This
one is really important. Don’t try and play like someone you’re not. If
you’re a grinder, grind. If you’re a scorer, score some goals. If
you’re a physical player, flatten some people. Play in your strengths
and don’t try to be a hero by doing other people’s jobs.
I’m not saying to dump the puck into
the corner on a breakaway if you’re a grinder, but I think you get the
picture. I had a slow start in Junior because when I showed up to camp I
decided to try and be a finesse player. One day, coach calls me into
his office and says ” Why did you get drafted?” I told him because I was
a physical player who was always first on the puck, played great
defensively and wasn’t scared to play physical. All he said was “I want
to see THAT player on the ice.” I finally started having success,
playing on the top lines as a shutdown player against the other team’s
best players.
I’m not saying to limit yourself, but
be realistic. If you’re not known for your hands, don’t start
toe-dragging everyone left right and center. This will only get you
benched after you create a few turnovers. Put everything on your side by
doing what you’re good at over and over again.
8. Finish Your Checks - I
can’t stress this enough. Even if you’re 5’4 and weigh 140lbs, finish
your checks! You have no idea how annoying it can be for the other team
when you have a guy finishing all his checks. It wears them down. When
they’re worn down they make mistakes, they get tired faster and they
create turnovers. Coaches love guys that finish their checks. It shows
you have grit and aren’t afraid to sacrifice your body for the team.
Some players are playing pro because
they finish all their checks night after night. It’s not easy to do, let
me tell you. These are guys that have complete respect from their
coaches and teammates.
If you’re not scared and like to play physical, start finishing all your checks to increase your time on ice.
7. Back-check Harder and With a Purpose – Everybody
back-checks. Some at full speed, some not so much. Coaches really rely
on players who give it their all on back-checks. If you want your coach
to trust you on the ice, back-checking harder is a great place to start.
Even if you’re tired, back-check full speed. Put your head down and
give it your all to get back in time. If you have to dive to stop
someone from taking a shot, do it.
More importantly, back-check with a
purpose. Back-check in a straight line down the middle towards your net
and look for an open man on the other team and neutralize his stick.
Stay close and make sure he can’t get a pass. If he does, poke the puck
away or lift his stick. And always stop in front of the net. Curling in
the corner or doing huge turns just creates room for opposing players
resulting in scoring chances against.
6. Keep The Shifts Short – Coach’s
don’t like payers who stay on for a whole minute, just to not have
enough energy to back-check. This is just bad. Your coach won’t like you
and your teammates won’t either. If you’re in beer league, your
teammates want to play too. If they see you staying on forever and
making errors because you’re tired, they won’t like you. Soon enough
they’ll be staying on longer too, and it’s just downhill from there.
Furthermore,
if you keep your shifts short you’re less prone to get tired. It’s the
long shifts that kill you. They start to add up, and by the middle of
the second period you will start to feel it in your legs and your lungs.
5. Stand Up For Your Teammates - If
you’re a big guy, make sure no one is picking on the little guys on
your team. And if you’re a little guy, still protect the big guys! A
coach loves to see players protecting each other. I’m not saying go out
and sucker punch a guy because he slashed your teammate after the play;
be smart about it. Make sure he knows he won’t be doing that all night.
If you get a chance, line him up and make him feel it. Keeping opposing
players in check is very important; you don’t want them doing whatever
they want against you guys. Don’t be a pushover.
Sometimes,
you will have to take a two-minute to get your point across. But oddly
enough, these penalties almost always get killed off because your
teammates see that you were doing it for the good of the team, and they
give it their all on the PK.
Your coach will notice.
4. Learn the PK or PP – Learning
the power-play or penalty-kill will drastically improve your time on
ice. If you’re not the power-play type, you can do really well on the PK
and vice versa. Each and every player, no matter what style, can bring
something to either the PP or PK. Ask your coach if he can try you out
on either one.
Make sure you listen to what he wants
during practice, and make sure you know the plays inside and out. If
you’re a go-to guy on the PP or PK, this means you’re getting
significantly more ice-time than other players. And if you’re lucky
enough to have the skills for both the PP and PK, then you better bring
your asthma pump.
3. Block Shots – Blocking shots is an art. Some players are great at it and others just
can’t seem to block a shot even when they’re being aimed at. The good
thing is, blocking shots can be taught. Anyone can do it. It just takes a
little bit of grit and balls. Even the skilled guys need to be able to
block shots from time to time.
Speaking of grit and balls, take a look at this amazing video. This is exactly what I’m talking about.
You need to do whatever you can to get
in front of that shot. If it means going one knee down, sliding, or
even diving in front of the puck to stop it from getting to the net, do
it. Players that are exceptionally good at this are rare. Coaches love
them and reward them with more ice-time than they can handle.
Just a tip: When you’re going to block a
shot, position yourself infront of the opposing player’s STICK, not his
body. This is a common misconception and it seperates the great shot
blockers from the bad ones. What’s worse, when you miss blocking shots
regularly, it just looks like you’re scared. Don’t be scared. You’re
geared from head to toe.
And chicks love scars.
2. Improve Your Face-Off Skills – Having
a face-off percentage of 55% and over is really valuable to a team. If
you’re in the 55%-60% range you’re probably the go-to guy on your team
for face-offs. This means you’re on the ice for any big moments in a
game. If you’re up or down a goal, on the PK, the PP, and whenever
there’s a few seconds left in a period you’re probably going to be on
the ice. Coaches love having a dependable center who can win face-offs
on demand. It can be the difference between winning and losing.
Think
about it. If I told you you have a 60% chance to start with the puck, do
you like your odds? I think so. And so will the coach. Face-offs are a
big part of the game and they have a lot to do with which team controls
the game.
Practice your face-offs whenever you
can, and get better against lefties and righties. If you’re not a
center, it doesn’t mean you can’t take important draws for the team.
A wise coach once told me, “Championships are always won and lost by face-offs and line-changes.” Just some food for thought.
1. Be A Master In Your D-Zone – Lastly, but most importantly, be a master in
your own zone. If you’re a winger, you need to be able to get the puck
out more often than not. If you’re a defense man, you need to control
the front of the net and be first on loose pucks in the corners. If
you’re a center, you need to support your wingers and defense and help
break the puck out of the zone, picking up a man in front whenever you
need to.
Block
shots, finish checks in the corners, and take away sticks in the slot.
These key tips will help you become a go-to defensive player for your
team. Coaches need to be able to really on certain players when they are
up by one in the third with a few minutes left. Yes, goals are pretty.
But preventing goals can be just as pretty, if not more pretty.
If you can become a go-to defensive player, you will see a lot more ice.
And if
you can put together just a few of these tips, your time on ice will
drastically improve. You won’t get better at these things overnight, but
with a little practice and some focus, they are attainable.
So take
matters into your own hands. Don’t blame the coach. Give him no other
choice but to reward you.
And when he does, make it happen.
Put these tips to work and share your success below!
Ben
ben@builtforhockey.com
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